06 December 2023.
Santa Rosa County, Florida, United States
Locality: Plants are growing on the north side of Oil Plant Road between the road and Bray Mill Creek (which dumps into the nearby Escambia River), 0.37 kilometers east of McDavid Park.
Coordinates: 30.9765, -87.1856
(Map it)
Elevation: 37m.
Georeference protocol: Lat/lon determined by GPS
Habitat: Wild Habitat
Environment description: Growing in full sun to part shade in seasonally moist to wet areas associated with Bray Mill Creek; however, during low rainfall periods, plants are in dry soil. The habitat is heavily degraded due to logging of most of the area except a narrow woodland along the creek edge. The gravel road also causes significant run off and deposition of road debris. Despite this fact, the Ilex decidua is thriving. Slope: 0 to 5 percent. Aspect: North to northeast. The underlying geology of this area is classified as Alluvium, of Pleistocene/Holocene origin and consists of undifferentiated Quaternary sediments of varying thickness including siliciclastics, organics and freshwater carbonates. The siliciclastics are light gray, tan, brown to black, unconsolidated to poorly consolidated, clean to clayey, silty, unfossiliferous, variably organic-bearing sands to blue green to olive green, poorly to moderately consolidated, sandy, silty clays. Organics occur as plant debris, roots, disseminated organic matrix and beds of peat. Freshwater carbonates, often referred to as marls in the literature, are scattered. (Source: USGS Florida Geologic Map Data.) The surface soil profile of this area is primarily Chewacla-Wahee-Riverview Series Association. The Chewacla Series consists of very deep, somewhat poorly drained, fine loamy alluvial soils of flood plains that range from strongly to very strongly acid. These soils contain very little rock and can reach a thickness of 2 m. Wahee Series consists of very deep, somewhat poorly drained, clayey and loamy marine or fluviomarine sediments. These soils are strongly to very strongly acid. The Riverview Series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils that formed in loamy alluvium on flood plains. These soils contain a slightly higher level of mica and iron deposits and range from slightly to strongly acid. (Source: NRCS Web Soil Survey.)
Number of plants sampled: 2
Associated species: Quercus nigra; Taxodium distichum; Betula nigra; Alnus serrulata; Planera aquatica; Liquidambar styraciflua; Smilax sp.; Sabal minor; Chasmanthium latifolium; Quercus alba; Bignonia capreolata; Carpinus caroliniana; Cyrilla racemiflora; Viburnum dentatum; Platanus occidentalis; Quercus michauxii; Rubus sp.; Campsis radicans.
Comment: This species is a dioecious, deciduous, multi-trunked large shrub/small tree with an upright spreading habit. The plant is medium textured with strongly ascending main trunks with spreading arching branches. Plants range in size from 3-4.5 m tall x 4-6 m wide. Leaves are simple and alternate; however, can be hard to determine since the leaves are most often attached to short spur branchlets on the twigs. Leaves are 3-8 cm long x 1-2.5 cm wide, obovate, and have a few coarse teeth along the leaf margin, especially on the upper half. Leaf color is medium green and somewhat shiny on top and light green beneath; plants during collection were partially defoliated with those still attached turning yellow-green. Smaller fruiting branches have spur-type branches with fruit borne singly and in clusters along the stem of younger terminal branches. Fruits are fleshy, round, orange to red fruit on short peduncles (2-5 mm long); fruit are round and 4-9 mm in diameter. Plants are occasional in the low, moist areas associated with the wetlands and creeks along Oil Plant Road. Seeds collected from two plants. Note: Collection of fruit was limited since it was late in the season and most fruit had already dropped. Future collections should be made a few weeks earlier from this geographic location to obtain more adequate quantities.
Collector(s):